#ma

I said, yet again, for Germany, Europe is not only indispensable, it is part and parcel of our identity. We've always said German unity, European unity and integration, that's two parts of one and the same coin. But we want, obviously, to boost our competitiveness. ↗

— Angela Merkel

#always #boost #coin #competitiveness #europe

We feel bound to the Christian image of humanity - that is what defines us. Those who do not accept this are in the wrong place here. ↗

— Angela Merkel

#bound #christian #defines #feel #here

Overcoming the Cold War required courage from the people of Central and Eastern Europe and what was then the German Democratic Republic, but it also required the steadfastness of Western partner over many decades when many had long lost hope of integration of the two Germanys and Europe. ↗

— Angela Merkel

#central #cold #cold war #courage #decades

Above all it is important to point out that we can only maintain our prosperity in Europe if we belong to the most innovative regions in the world. ↗

— Angela Merkel

#belong #europe #important #innovative #maintain

At the beginning of the 60's our country called the foreign workers to come to Germany and now they live in our country. We kidded ourselves a while, we said: 'They won't stay, sometime they will be gone.' But this isn't reality. ↗

— Angela Merkel

#called #come #country #foreign #germany

At this time - we're in a dramatic crisis - euro bonds are precisely the wrong answer. They lead us into a debt union, not a stability union. Each country has to take its own steps to reduce its debt. ↗

— Angela Merkel

#bonds #country #crisis #debt #dramatic

I don't carry any early childhood trauma around with me, if that's what you're hinting at. The story of the bicycles - and there were three of them which were stolen from me - I've dealt with it well. ↗

— Angela Merkel

#around #bicycles #carry #childhood #dealt

I felt really sorry for Oliver Kahn. Up to that point he had made lots of saves for the German team. Of course he could have caught the ball but it just happened. It was bad luck. In that situation, you need to be very strong psychologically to carry on. ↗

— Angela Merkel

#bad luck #ball #carry #caught #could

I have just explained my idea of how a constructive period of reflection, one that would send a clear message to the citizens of Europe: You should now what our priorities are. For Germany this means: Unemployment is one of one of our biggest problems. ↗

— Angela Merkel

#biggest problems #citizens #clear #clear message #constructive

I see nothing that points to a recession in Germany. But I see considerable long-term tasks ahead of us that have to do with markets regaining confidence in Europe and that have a lot to do with reducing debt. ↗

— Angela Merkel

#confidence #considerable #debt #europe #germany